The European Commission said Wednesday that it would not be referring the planned merger of Liberty Global with Ziggo to the Dutch competition authorities.
Although the Commission has the jurisdiction over the proposed transaction the Dutch competition authority (ACM) had submitted a request to review it instead.
The Commission rejected the request because it believed it was better placed to make a decision, taking into account the presence of Liberty Global in 12 countries of the European Economic Area. It also expressed concern that the merger might have an impact in Flemish-speaking Belgium.
It has until October 17 to take a final decision.
Last January, Liberty Global and Ziggo announced that LG was offering €34.53 per share to acquire Ziggo. Once completed, the combined footprint of Ziggo and UPC Netherlands will reach seven million, or over 90% of Dutch homes, and create a (almost) nationwide challenger in the mobile and enterprise businesses to compete with incumbent KPN.
The plan is to merge the operations of UPC Nederland and Ziggo into a single company, which will operate under the Ziggo brand and will be headquartered at the current Ziggo HQ in Utrecht.
